DLSS and RTX are the talk of the town when it comes to graphics processing. These two fairly new technologies have revolutionized the way modern GPUs handle visuals. But can a GTX card run ray tracing?
While the technology is resource-heavy, it is possible for the GTX 1060 and higher graphic cards to run ray tracing. You may need to lower the resolution or turn down the graphical settings. The experience will not be optimal, and you can expect the performance to take a hit.
There’s so much to learn about ray tracing. And while we may not touch on everything, we will tell you all about the basics: what it is, its minimum and recommended system requirements, and some notable game titles that support it.
What is Ray Tracing?
Ray tracing is a computer graphics technique for simulating the behavior of light in a 3D environment. It enables photorealistic images to be generated by tracing the path of light through a 3D scene.
This tech works by projecting individual rays of light from an imaginary eye point out into the scene, one at a time. As each ray of light interacts with objects in the scene, it is reflected, refracted, and absorbed.
Lots of technical stuff here, but in a much simpler sense, you can think of it as shooting a single laser beam into a scene and then recording how that light interacts with the objects inside. With ray tracing, you can create incredibly realistic backgrounds and textures that make games look more lifelike than ever before.
The tech has long been used in films but has become increasingly popular with computer gamers over the past few years. We’ve got Hollywood to thank for this.
Can a GTX Card Run Ray Tracing?
Initially, during the launch of ray tracing, the hardware needed to run the technology was very expensive. As such, only higher-end graphics cards, mostly RTX, could run it.
However, with the introduction of new and improved GPUs from Nvidia and AMD, it is now possible to run ray tracing on mid-range cards such as the Nvidia GTX 1060 or the AMD RX 5700 XT. Ray tracing is unlike DLSS, which only requires an Nvidia RTX graphic card.
But ray tracing can be crushing even for RTX. So, how on earth can a GTX card handle it? Unfortunately, not all GTX cards are compatible with ray tracing. Only those with the necessary hardware can run it.
Even then, these cards may not be able to run the demanding games that require ray tracing. You may need to turn down the graphical settings or lower the resolution to maintain a playable frame rate.
And although you will be running ray tracing on a GTX card, it will not be an optimal experience. Ray tracing is still very resource-heavy, so expect performance to take a hit no matter what.
Here are the minimum system requirements for running ray tracing on a GTX card:
- GPU: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780
- Processor: Intel Core i5-4690
- Memory: 8GB RAM
- OS: Windows 7 64 bit
Here are the recommended system requirements for running ray tracing on a GTX card:
- GPU: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060
- Processor: Intel Core i5-7600K or AMD Ryzen 5 1600X
- Memory: 16 GB
- OS: Windows 10 64-bit
Note: Not just PCs support ray tracing. For example, Playstation 5 and Xbox Series X have some traces.
GTX Cards Supporting Ray Tracing
You can enjoy ray tracing if you own the GTX 1060 or higher cards. Here’s a list of the GTX cards that can run ray tracing:
- Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660
- Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti
- Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 6GB
- Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 Ti
- Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070
- Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 Ti
- Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080
- Nvidia Titan X
- Nvidia Titan XP
Again, these graphic cards can only offer the primary ray tracing effects since they lack the hardware. The added workload of ray tracing can cause the performance to suffer, but the cards only have enough power to make the experience playable.
How to Set Up Ray Tracing on a GTX Card?
Once you have the necessary hardware, setting up ray tracing on a GTX card is relatively straightforward- nothing special is required.
- First, make sure to update your graphics drivers to the latest version. This will ensure that your GPU is compatible with ray tracing and has the necessary features to work correctly.
- Next, you’ll have to enable ray tracing in your game settings. Do this by selecting the “ray tracing” option in the game’s settings menu. You can adjust the ray tracing quality and other parameters to get the desired result.
- Finally, you’ll need to adjust the graphics settings for optimal performance. For example, you might want to lower the resolution or turn down other settings to ensure a smooth frame rate.
Which Games Support Ray Tracing?
Not every game supports ray tracing, as the technology is still relatively new, and developers must create special coding for it. But more and more games are adding ray tracing support as the technology grows in popularity.
Some of the most popular titles that currently support ray tracing include:
- Call of Duty Modern Warfare
- Battlefield V
- FIST: Forged In Shadow Torch
- Faraday Protocol
- Final Fantasy XV
- Farming Simulator 22
- Jurassic World Evolution 2
- Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered
- Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy
- Mechwarrior V: Mercenaries
- Metro Exodus
- Shadow of the Tomb Raider
- Minecraft (RTX)
- Quake II RTX
- Watchdogs Legion
- World Of Warcraft: Shadowlands
Here are a few titles working on getting ray tracing and will be available soon:
- Avatar: Frontiers Of Pandora
- Black Myth: Wukong
- Deliver Us Mars
- Hogwarts Legacy
- Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales
- Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
- STALKER 2: Heart of Chernobyl
- The Witcher III: Wild Hunt
- Throne and Liberty
- Tower of Fantasy
- The Lord of the Rings: Gollum
- Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2
- Warhammer 40,000: Darktide
Ray Tracing: The Future Present of Gaming
Ray tracing is becoming more and more popular. With technology advancing rapidly, it won’t be long before it becomes standard in many games. With the advent of PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, the number of games supporting ray tracing will skyrocket soon.
If you own a GTX 1060 card or higher and want to take advantage of the latest gaming technology, you should be ready for ray tracing. However, we recommend getting an RTX card (for more serious gamers) for superior ray tracing capabilities and performance.
Before you complain about the prices, there are great options in more affordable cards, like the RTX 2060. RTX 2080 is now available at the same price as the GTX 1080.